Author's Note: Firstly, new Ever After High fic posted yesterday, I'd appreciate some honest opinions over there. Secondly going to be doing a little less writing cause holidays. Third, Read, Review, Favourite and Enjoy!
Chapter 33: Demon Dog God
Naofumi never lied to his clients, they would never have to deal with the dragon again, so long as they stayed out of it's territory and didn't try to steal all of his stuff. He didn't mention that part, just shook his head as a group of eager young men went off to the mountains. Arriving in the castle town Naofumi had a message sent to the king about his impromptu alliance with the dragon, after he was done with his business he'd make sure the King sent the lizard his support. Naofumi arrived outside of the church, though he wondered if it could be called that anymore without any of the priests there. The doors of the church were suddenly smashed open as a young priest was sent flying through the doors, back pedalling away fearfully as a over grown wolf stepped through the door and cornered him against Naofumi's party. With a loud snap of her jaws the wolf was pulling something that was hanging around the man's neck off of him, before he passed out in sheer terror the smell of urine coming off of him.
"Was that necessary?" Naofumi asked as he watched Setsuna turned back to normal before she promptly spat the key she had in her mouth out.
"He wasn't being cooperative. He will be for now on." Setsuna led Naofumi and his party into the church, Rifana and Raphtalia had a hug based reunion while they made a notable effort to avoid the two three headed dogs asleep on the floor in front of the gate in the back. Setsuna opened the gate with the key, revealing the Dragon's Hourglass. "The soldiers mentioned that you upgraded some of your companions earlier." The Half Demon tossed the guards the key for the gate after she was done with it.
"Some yes. I'm told that doing the class up ceremony with certain materials can make them healthier. I'm here because I have the material to do one of them." Naofumi explained pulling the bone from the fox boss out of his shield.
"I might have some materials that can work for that, what do you need?" Setsuna asked cocking her brow suspiciously.
"You still have that Dragon Emperor core in your spear?" Setsuna pulled out a fistful of the stuff out of her spear, at the same time Naofumi plucked a hair that was sticking out of Filo's head.
"This will double whatever the stats of whoever you apply it to." The two traded class up materials, Naofumi was about to go to the Dragon Hourglass when Setsuna stopped him first.
"I was here first. Rifana, your friend's master might have given us something good." Rifana broke off from Raphtalia as she went over to the dragon's hour glass and held her hand up to it. The options for the hour glass appeared before Setsuna's face, various possible job classes as well as one Special class up. "'Priestess of the God of Birds.'" Muttering that Setsuna turned her eyes around to face Filo who was stuffing her face full of one of Naofumi's burgers. "Whatever. It's the same class up as your friend do you want it?" Rifana nodded her head excitedly. "Done." Setsuna dropped the cowlick onto the class up screen and with a glow of golden light the class up was completed, Rifana's stats going through the roof. "You should tell Tatsuya and Ikki about this shit some time. Keel!" The Dog Demi-human ran over to the Dragon Hourglass and put her hand on it, to Setsuna's surprise though several special options appeared, it must have been having a reaction to the materials stored inside of her spear. "Hmm. A few options have appeared. Do you want to hear them?"
"Okay Ane!" Keel stated prompting a roll of Setsuna's eyes.
"'Priestess of the God of Birds: A follower of the God of Birds, child of Heroes and defender of the world, this blessing grants incredible brute strength to the receiver.'" Setsuna looked at the next option, incredible brute strength was useful yes but if better options didn't exist then Naofumi would not still be here. "This one seems to have two bits attached to it. Job Change and Species Change.'Follower of Doom: As part of the Wave of Calamity you have a natural predisposition towards destruction. Two Headed Nui: a rare dog type transformation where you grow a second head, increasing your potential offensive power.'" Well that will teach her to be careful about using monster materials in the future, the offensive power was high but that was the only thing that was high, if the rest of the wave monsters are like that then this might be easier then she thought. Of course the real danger isn't from the monsters, it was from the otherworldly assassins that followed after them. But she could muse about this Glass person later. "'Pack Leader. As a leader of the Waves of Calamity you have the ability to bolster the physical power of your subordinates granting them huge bonuses. Three Headed Nui: A rare transformation where you grow two extra heads allowing you to cast multiple magics at the same time.'" The bosses were support types? Is that the reason why they kept going down so easily? The last one though, Setsuna was surprised that it was even a option at all. "'Inu-Gami: A minor god from another world with a reputation for vicious savagery born from the wailing souls of thousands of people slain in war. They have incredibly high combat ability alongside a high affinity for healing and offensive magic.' Why do I feel like this hourglass is bad mouthing me?" Setsuna asked though she noticed that she was getting a weird look of admiration from Keel. "What?"
"Is that what you are Ane?" Keel asked feeling like she knew which one she wanted now.
"Continuing on. 'Holy Priestess: A specialist in the use of spiritual power in order to remove curses, purify the dead and cast protective wardings.'"
"Spiritual power? Does that mean he'll be able to fight like us?" Naofumi asked looking suspiciously at Setsuna. It wasn't only Keel that was paying rapt attention what she had been saying, one of Naofumi's own party members, a dog-lion hybrid was making his interest known as well. Originally he was planning on doing lion, but if what Setsuna here was saying as true...
"I want that one Ane! The Inu-gami!" Keel was so excited that she had shifted into her therianthrope form, a two legged humanoid malamute husky.
"Fine." Setsuna bit down on her thumb hard enough to draw blood and dripped it in front of the class up screen in front of her. Suddenly the entire church had started to rumble, as if to indicated the passage of a enormous amount of raw power, finally the class up ceremony had ended. Keel had grown a little taller, his tail along with her hair and ears had all turned a silvery white while her eyes had changed to resemble dog eyes. On a side note, Setsuna saw his overall stats increase by a significant margin, not quite having her stats doubled, but in exchange there was now a SP bar on his abilities, Setsuna's dogs could be seen off to the side howling with approval at the upgrade. Unfortunately for Keel though something else had increased as well.
"Way to go Ane! I've never... felt..." Keel stated looking down at the huge mounds of flesh that had appeared in front of them. What's worst everyone else saw them too, with Raphtalia especially looking almost as mortified as Keel. "EH!?"
"EHHHH!? KEEL YOU'VE TURNED INTO A GIRL!" Raphtalia's thought process ground to a halt at the same time that Keel crouched down low out of shame.
"Hmm. Well this does seem like the less extreme transformation compared to changing your species." Naofumi commented idly.
"She hasn't turned into a girl she already was one. Her Stupid father never bothered to explain the difference to her." Setsuna snapped with a roll of her eyes. "Change into your Therianthrope form." Keel did so, and though the new form recovered her modesty it also showed off yet more changes. Gone was the puppy like Malamute, in her place was a tall silver haired werewolf like creature, lithe in form and teeth sharp as knives, the howling of approval from the dogs was increasing in pace now. "Well that's odd. I certainly don't remember ever turning into that before." Setsuna stated looking at Keel suspiciously. "Hmm." Naofumi on the other hand had a better idea of what was going on. "Setsuna, can you turn into your wolf form using magical power?"
"Why would I do that?" Setsuna replied cocking a brow suspiciously. "Just humour us." Naofumi stated prompting Setsuna to grumble before she closed her eyes, her body gave a quiet hum of magical power before she changed forms into a creature like Keel but slightly taller. "I see. So you use Magical power or Spiritual power when you transform then?" Naofumi asked cocking a interested brow at Setsuna. "Normally spiritual power." Setsuna stated rolling her shoulders.
"Okay then." Now Naofumi turned to face Keel. "Keel do that then." Raphtalia on the other hand wanted no part in that.
"Mister Naofumi!" Raphtalia shouted but Keel looked like she was already trying it.
Keel kept her focus on her spirit bar, trying to will it to go down and to her surprise it soon started to change, everyone saw what was coming and evacuated from the church as quickly as possible resulting in a giant silver white wolf emerging from the church smashing it to pieces in the process, and for once it wasn't Setsuna who was doing it. Keel's stats were, impressive, in some parts she even exceeded hers, the Spear Hero's. Noting there was something fundamentally wrong about that Setsuna turned to face the hourglass. This thing has the power to reset people's levels correct? Why not hers? On that note Setsuna put her hand on the Hourglass. She felt like she was drowning, but not in water. Water should could deal with but this was something else, the eye was bigger than her, bigger than the church she had been standing in before it was destroyed. So big in fact that at this distance she couldn't even tell what it was.
"You wish to make a offering little hero? Fine." Setsuna felt... something being pulled out of her, pain shooting through every fiber of being until the loss of consciousness knocked her out. When she awoke she noticed that Naofumi was standing above her.
"What was that about?" Naofumi asked while he helped Setsuna to her feet.
"I touched the Dragon's Hourglass. I don't recommend doing it." Setsuna explained noting that she had shrunk down a little big. Suddenly she keeled over and puked, something raw and organic all over the floor. "...something. I don't know maybe the dragon it was named for contacted me, said something about a offering, and now..." For the second time in a month, Setsuna's clothes didn't fit her, she had shrunk down by quite a considerable degree as if she had just de-aged by a couple years, or several decades depending on your point of view on the matter. "I see. So that mess on the floor there is..."
"Your meal from the first night we were here." Naofumi concluded, Malty had mentioned that watching a Demi-human de-age was almost unbearable to watch. It was perhaps the most honest thing she had ever said.
"Right then... well we can't just leave... whatever this is here now can we?" Setsuna scooped up whatever she had puked up into her spear and was surprised when it unlocked a new form. 'Conditions Met. Inugami Spear Level Locked 40.' Oh she knew what was happening now. "Welp I'm back down to one now." Setsuna stated making it sound like this was by accident instead of design. "I'm going off hunting to bring my level back up." Setsuna was about to leave before the half dog in Naofumi's crew moved to intercept her. "Um... if I could trouble you for a moment of your time lady Setsuna." The half dog said as Setsuna guessed what he wanted. After the second successful special Class up Naofumi decided the situation couldn't get any worst and opted to proceed with Kyubi's and Zenberu's respective class ups a long last. True to the name giving to the bones from the last wave in the mountain side Kyubi now looked like the nine tailed fox of legends, or at the very least a two tailed fox with more to come very soon. "So you have more tails now. Is this a good thing?" Naofumi failed to understand the upgrade here aside from Kyubi's health having improved.
"The organs that store my body's magical power is in my tails, so yes more is better." Kyubi explained while standing aside for Zenberu. Another double up for the big guy, gaining both the job class 'Dragon Emperor Priest' and the species change over to 'Dragon Emperor' his appearance had undergone a change too, his entire body was black with exception to the silver crest on his forehead, contrary to expectations instead of the vestigial wings on his back having grown they instead shrunk, as in they were no longer there, not that they would have affected big guy's fighting power any way but still.
The King sat on his throne, looking down at the roll of parchment detailing the costs of rebuilding the church. Though that wasn't half as interesting as the faces of the people he had gathered together, each one of them "loyal" anti-demi-human fanatics who were vaguely aware of the fact that they had summoned the god of the very people that they considered a step below monsters in their honest to goodness opinions. And now she had found a way of making more of herself.
"...Explain." The king stated bluntly looking at both Setsuna and the two silver haired demi-humans in kneeling position behind her. Setsuna wasn't kneeling though, nothing of the sort, her eyes were looking straight up at the king in raw defiance, her figure cutting enough raw defiance as destruction she had carved through the Kingdom the other day. Good. That would mean that when she did fly off the handle and wipe out all the people here they wouldn't be held accountable.
"Demi-human class upgrades meet demon dog blood. Figure it out." Setsuna's words confirmed their worst fears.
Following Setsuna no longer bothering to hide her demonic nature anymore some basic math was done with the former Rabier estate at the centre of the equation and the conclusion was a still very low levelled Setsuna writing off the entire estate alongside a legendary monster Even the heroes of old couldn't beat. Proof of that victory could been in the giant brute that was following Naofumi along, the spitting image of the Tyrant Dragon Rex. This could be the birth of an entirely new Demi-human species, one that would quickly climb up to the top ten. It was hard to put together a accurate idea of their power what with the Heroes by now well documented level bonuses, they would have to use a controlled sample at some point in time, all of this information that could wait until much later for now he needed some idea of what he was dealing with.
"What are your plans Sir Hero?" The king asked looking down at Setsuna at last.
"Well since you asked, I thought I'd going out to the mountains for a bit, train up these two for their own class upgrades." Setsuna explained indicating the two three headed dogs that were asleep behind her, though there were those who were questioning if she had gotten smaller for some reason that they didn't know. Nor did they care, by now they were well aware of the boss that hit the Seatto territory during the first wave, a huge three headed and horned dog, now here sits two it's spitting images chewing away at a cow femur each, the waves and the Spear Demon, the two greatest horrors of the age united in one package.
"If there's no other problems that need addressing, I'd like to go now." Setsuna stated as her eyes checked the time at the top part of her help menu.
"In a hurry for some reason Sir Hero?" The King asked looking at Setsuna suspicious.
"Yes I intend to use a catapult to fling myself over the boarder of your country and into your neighbours to deal with their wave over there." Setsuna stated bluntly prompting a look of outrage on the faces of the present nobility.
"Your majesty! This is outrageous! She is as good as declaring her intent to protect the animals!" Setsuna grabbed hold of the shirt of the man who uttered that slur and smashed her skull against his, noting with satisfaction that he was still groaning in pain the loss of stats be damned.
"Careful of what you speak of in front of pointed ears little man." Setsuna snapped prompting her to stab her spear into the ground inches away from the man's groin. "I don't know if any of you fools have noticed but the waves seems to have provided you with something of a blessing."
"Explain." The King stated looking looking at Setsuna suspiciously.
"Haven't any of you noticed that the the balloons are giving more experience points than before?" Setsuna asked prompting a look of confusion from the people in the courtroom, some even found themselves laughing at her foolishness. To Naofumi's annoyance the King seemed to have reached the correct conclusion at the same time as him.
"World's exist in vacuums." Naofumi stated earning the attention of the court. "Everything that is on them has always existed on them. Except for Meteors, the occasional goody that falls out of the sky to benefit the people who find it first." People dismissed Naofumi's statement with a simply claim that they are aware of how formidable meteor weapons are. "This World's meteors have teeth and claws and evidently swords and other weapons too." Naofumi gave the two three headed dogs a scratch on the sides of their heads. "And just like the ones of my world you have to crack them open to get at the juicy parts inside."
"XP." The King understood what Naofumi meant. "If the waves are ignored in the demi-human nations then they will get their ultimate solve all resources in droves, experience points, the potential for powerful class upgrades and weapons, not to mention monsters for them to add to their numbers against us. So I ask you this, what is the better choice? Allowing the Hero to do as she pleases and fight the waves? Or allowing potentially thousands of weapons to fall down on the heads of our enemies to use against us?" The King asked and to the surprise of few the room went silent at the armour piercing question. "Miss Setsuna I leave the task of resource denial to you."
"Yeah, yeah." Setsuna waved everyone off as she started to leave. "Has Sir Tatsuya and Sir Ikki contacted you with the progress of their training and research?" The King asked looking at the two heroes with curiosity.
"No. We haven't been talking to each other since your daughter tried to kill us." It wasn't that the others held Naofumi in contempt or the likes, it was simply that they've been busy.
"You're all excused, I have my own business to attend to." After the Heroes and the court left The King went through the castle and into the room where his daughter had been recovering. They were right about one thing, the curse of wrath was stalling the healing process, not even the high quality holy water confiscated from the church was doing any notable good evaporating into black smoke on contact with the wounds, the unusually high stats born out of the Heroes parties during the wave were doing a slightly better job at healing her, but only barely. Without the far more miraculous powers of someone like Naofumi or Tatsuya the effects were less than useless.
"When was Cal Mira last active?" The king asked prompting a assistant to check some notes.
"10 years one month from now. It should activate after the next wave is over." So the King had less than a month to clean up his country enough that he would have to afford loosing his grip on the four heroes is that it? Fine then. Let's make war.
Author's Note:
RonaldM40196867: True. Less so this year than other's.
MarauderPrime12: Thank you for saying so.
